Blog Post #6: Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC)
1. Introduction
In the last several years, online learning platforms such as Coursera, edX, and others have become very popular. These platforms offer courses that anyone can take from anywhere in the world, which has made learning more flexible and accessible. This type of online course is called a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course).
Most of my own MOOC experiences come from Udemy, which is another major online learning platform. The MOOC I took for this reflection is “Next.js & Supabase Mastery: Build 2 Full-Stack Apps” which is a course about web development. In this reflection, I will talk about my experience with this course from different perspectives.
2. Legitimacy
Compared to traditional university courses that have legitimacy guaranteed by the institution, and learners do not need to evaluate the credibility of an instructor in advance, I think that Udemy courses heavily rely on personal reviews and ratings to establish credibility, although each instructor briefly introduces their professional background. Learners choose an instructor who appears trustworthy based on comments and course previews.
3. Autonomy
Udemy offers full autonomy. You can proceed a course at your own pace. By contrast, traditional courses provide a fixed structure, where deadlines, weekly schedules, and classroom progression regulate the pace. This reduces autonomy but makes it easier to maintain momentum because motivation is externally supported.
4. Connection with your peers and the instructor(s)
Traditional courses offer in-person, real-time classes where students can communicate with instructors face-to-face and ask questions immediately. The sense of classroom presence naturally creates interaction not only with the instructor but also with peers.
On the other hand, interaction on Udemy exists but is quite limited. Instructors may answer questions through the Q&A section, and some of them provide Discord communities for learners, but the communication is asynchronous and depends heavily on the instructor’s responsiveness. As a result, it is easy to feel isolated compared with the collaborative atmosphere of traditional classes.
For this reason, I personally much prefer traditional courses in terms of building connections and feeling part of a learning community.
5. Assessment and evaluation
The course I took did not include quizzes or assignments, although some Udemy courses do. Since I take Udemy courses mainly to improve my software development skills, I believe it is necessary to check my own understanding by actually writing code and working through the content rather than relying on course assessments.
6. Learning that was achieved
My goal was to learn about the web framework Next.js, and I became able to use it in personal projects, and by applying what I learned in practice, I was able to deepen my understanding and identify areas that I needed to revisit.
7. Anything else of note
Simply watching videos is not enough for real understanding. I realized that trying to apply what I learned to something else shows what I truly understand and don’t. Repeatedly reviewing weak areas and re-applying the knowledge played an important role in improving my understanding.
8. Is this MOOC an xMOOC or a cMOOC?
I think Udemy is a xMOOC. The learning model is mainly based on instructors explaining concepts through video lectures, and learners get the knowledge/information individually. The flow of knowledge is largely one-directional from the instructor to the learner. There is little peer-to-peer communication, and interaction is not a core component of the learning experience. For these reasons, Udemy is more close to xMOOC.
9. Is this MOOC “Open”?
In my view, Udemy is open in some senses but not in others.
It is not fully open because courses are paid, course materials cannot be reused or remixed, and the platform does not intentionally support building learning communities.
However, Udemy can be considered open in terms of accessibility. Anyone in the world can sign up for the platform and take a course as long as they pay the fee, without institutional affiliation, prerequisites, or admission barriers.
10. Personal takeaway
From this experience, I realized that MOOCs can be powerful for skill development, but meaningful learning does not happen automatically. To benefit the most, I hope to combine MOOCs with hands-on practice, peer discussion, or community participation whenever possible. For me, the most effective learning happens when video instruction is followed by application, reflection, and feedback — not just passive watching.
I used AI to check grammar and expressions, and improve wording, and to help organize pros and cons. However, all reflections, experiences, and opinions in this post are my own.